The hispid hare (''Caprolagus hispidus''), also called Assam rabbit and bristly rabbit, is a

leporid Leporidae is the family of rabbits and hares, containing over 60 species of extant mammals in all. The Latin word ''Leporidae'' means "those that resemble ''lepus''" (hare). Together with the pikas, the Leporidae constitute the mammalian order ...

native to

South Asia South Asia is the southern subregion of Asia, which is defined in both geographical and ethno-cultural terms. The region consists of the countries of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka.;;;;;;;; ...

, whose historic range extended along the southern foothills of the

Himalayas The Himalayas, or Himalaya (; ; ), is a mountain range in Asia, separating the plains of the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau. The range has some of the planet's highest peaks, including the very highest, Mount Everest. Over 100 ...

. Today, its habitat is highly fragmented with an area of occupancy estimated at less than extending over an area of . Populations experienced a continuing decline in suitable habitat due to increasing

agriculture Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people to ...

flood control Flood control methods are used to reduce or prevent the detrimental effects of flood waters."Flood Control", MSN Encarta, 2008 (see below: Further reading). Flood relief methods are used to reduce the effects of flood waters or high water level ...

, and human development. It is therefore listed as

Endangered An endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. Endangered species may be at risk due to factors such as habitat loss, poaching and inva ...

on the

IUCN Red List The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species, also known as the IUCN Red List or Red Data Book, founded in 1964, is the world's most comprehensive inventory of the global conservation status of biol ...

since 1986. It is the only species in the genus ''Caprolagus''.

Characteristics

The hispid hare has a harsh and bristly coat. Its ears are very short and do not project beyond the fur. The coat is dark brown on the back due to a mixture of black and brown hairs; brown on the chest and whitish on the

abdomen The abdomen (colloquially called the belly, tummy, midriff, tucky or stomach) is the part of the body between the thorax (chest) and pelvis, in humans and in other vertebrates. The abdomen is the front part of the abdominal segment of the torso. ...

. The tail is brown and about long. In body weight males range from with a mean of . Females weigh in average , including a heavily pregnant female weighing in this statistical mean weight. The

frontal bone The frontal bone is a bone in the human skull. The bone consists of two portions.''Gray's Anatomy'' (1918) These are the vertically oriented squamous part, and the horizontally oriented orbital part, making up the bony part of the forehead, par ...

s are very wide. The occipito-nasal length generally exceeds . There is no clear notch in front of

postorbital process The postorbital process is a projection on the frontal bone near the rear upper edge of the eye socket. In many mammals, it reaches down to the zygomatic arch, forming the postorbital bar. References See also * Orbital process In the human ...

es. In average, this hare is long from head to tail.

Distribution and habitat

The historical range of the hispid hare extended from

Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh (; , 'Northern Province') is a state in northern India. With over 200 million inhabitants, it is the most populated state in India as well as the most populous country subdivision in the world. It was established in 1950 ...

through southern

Nepal Nepal (; ne, नेपाल ), formerly the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal ( ne, सङ्घीय लोकतान्त्रिक गणतन्त्र नेपाल ), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mai ...

, the northern region of

West Bengal West Bengal (, Bengali: ''Poshchim Bongo'', , abbr. WB) is a state in the eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabitants within an area of . West Bengal is the fourt ...

Assam Assam (; ) is a state in northeastern India, south of the eastern Himalayas along the Brahmaputra and Barak River valleys. Assam covers an area of . The state is bordered by Bhutan and Arunachal Pradesh to the north; Nagaland and Manipur ...

and into

Bangladesh Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mos ...

. Today, its distribution is sporadic in Bangladesh,

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

, Nepal and

Bhutan Bhutan (; dz, འབྲུག་ཡུལ་, Druk Yul ), officially the Kingdom of Bhutan,), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is situated in the Eastern Himalayas, between China in the north and India in the south. A mountainous ...

. It inhabits tracts of early successional tall

grasslands A grassland is an area where the vegetation is dominated by grasses (Poaceae). However, sedge (Cyperaceae) and rush (Juncaceae) can also be found along with variable proportions of legumes, like clover, and other herbs. Grasslands occur natural ...

and takes refuge in marshy areas or grasses adjacent to river banks during the dry season, when these areas are susceptible to burning. The population in the extensive grasslands of

Shuklaphanta National Park Shuklaphanta National Park is a national park in the Terai of the Far-Western Region, Nepal, covering of open grasslands, forests, riverbeds and tropical wetlands at an elevation of . It is bounded by the Mahakali river in the west and south. A ...

may be of international significance. In January 2016, a hispid hare was recorded in

Chitwan National Park , iucn_category = II , location = Central Terai of Nepal , established = 1973 , nearest_city = Bharatpur , map = Nepal Bagmati Province#Nepal#India#South Asia , relief = 1 , label = Chitwan National Park , label_position = top , coordina ...

for the first time since 1984.

Ecology

The hispid hare is most active at dawn and dusk. The limited information available on reproduction indicates that its average litter size is small.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q301068 Mammals described in 1839 Mammals of Asia Mammals of Bhutan Mammals of India Mammals of Nepal Leporidae